Bear Wharf
Reading

Occupying a regenerated brownfield site alongside the River Kennet, Bear Wharf acts as a local landmark, providing visual variety and a broad mixture of high quality flats, as well as a restaurant and exhibition facilities. The design is a series of linked structures emulating the Victorian warehouses formerly on the site. A series of projecting gable ends face the riverside with elevations and scale varying in relation to the surrounding buildings. The western end is more formal due to its prominence in distant views of Reading. The towpath is retained, with a series of warehouse style openings acting as seating areas for local residents. The scheme includes a new square which was created to act as a focus for the new restaurant in an old Maltings building.